The Dell Dimension XPS series is the company's answer to the high-end boutique systems from builders like Alienware, Falcon Northwest, and VoodooPC. Though the XPS isn't obscenely overclocked like its boutique brethren, it is wickedly fast and pretty distinctive in its own right. And this time around, it's equipped with a new processor: In fact, the Dimension XPS Gen 5 ($3,999 direct with monitor using Dell e-value code 6V411-XPS5PC) is the first system we've seen with the dual-core Pentium Extreme Edition 840 (Pentium EE 840) processor. (Read "Test-Driving the Dual Core Pentium EE 840" for more on what dual-core processing means for your computing experience.) With the addition of Microsoft Windows XP Media Center 2005, the XPS Gen 5 is more than just a gaming system, it's Dell's top-of-the-line gaming/multimedia machine and our latest Editors' Choice.

Like a Leatherman multipurpose tool, the Dell XPS Gen 5 does many things well. With 500GB of RAID hard drive space, the desktop has plenty of storage for the videos that will pile up thanks to the inclusion of Media Center 2005 and the two TV tuners. Four SATA ports on the motherboard enable it to hold 1.6TB (1,600 GB) of drive space, if you use 400GB drives (and with 500GB drives on the horizon, 2TB on the desktop isn't too far off).

The XPS Gen 5's TV tuners show steady pictures, even when the system is otherwise occupied (when it's also running a virus scan, for example), a benefit that can be directly attributed to the dual-core processor. The inclusion of the dual-core Pentium EE 840 means that someone playing a game on the XPS Gen 5 won't be affected by, say, the Media Center software recording TV or streaming video in the background. (As with all Windows Media Center 2005 desktops, if you purchase a Windows Media Extender, you'll be able to watch your recorded video on AV components in another room.)

Boutique systems' color schemes are sometimes hokey; we like the colored hues on the XPS Gen 5's front. Customers can choose from a variety of colors reminiscent of Star Wars lightsabers. We like the XPS Gen 5's roomy case for the most part. When the machine is laid on its side for servicing, as recommended by Dell, it's easy to open it, service it, and add components. When it's standing vertically as a tower, the case is a little harder to open. Though not all users will upgrade their systems, you'll need a good amount of space to work on this desktop.

The XPS Gen 5's SYSmark 2004 numbers indicate that it is one of the best systems we've tested for multimedia tasks. Its Internet Content Creation score of 285 is the highest we've seen, beating out our previous leader, the Overdrive Torque.SLI. Short of a high-powered dual-processor dual-core workstation, this is the Windows system to be using if you're planning on doing some major graphics work, such as video encoding, heavy PhotoShop work, or Flash animation. As expected, the desktop's Office Productivity score shows that it runs day-to-day tasks fast as well. (If you still need a little extra "oomph", the XPS Gen 5 is user-overclockable in BIOS to 3.4 GHz and 3.6 GHz.)

One of the complaints we've heard from readers is that "protection" programs, like Norton Internet Security, are useful for safeguarding their systems. but slow their computers to a crawl. Dual-core Hyper-Threaded processors, such as the Pentium EE 840, can help, improving your computing experience because the processor's dual cores can process tasks simultaneously. While most of the system is "concentrating" on making sure your Internet or gaming experience is fulfilled in the foreground, the reserve power that the dual cores provide protects you in the background, running Norton or other antivirus or firewall programs.

The XPS desktop line began as gaming boxes, and the XPS Gen 5 takes this to another level. As configured here, this desktop can kick pixels with the best of them. Doom 3 and Halo are fully playable at all resolutions, including 1,600-by-1,200, with all the eye candy turned on, thanks to the Pentium EE 840 and the ATI Radeon X850 XT PE graphics. The system doesn't quite hit the perfect 60+ frames per second score in Doom 3 at 1,600-by-1,200, but no single graphics card solution has so far, and 40 fps is still quite playable.

The addition of the 955X chipset and the dual-core Pentium EE 840 to a Media Center system makes the top-of-the-line Dell Dimension XPS Gen 5 a powerful high-end gaming and multimedia system worthy of its Editors' Choice.

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